2016 European floods
| Date | May–June 2016 |
|---|---|
| Deaths | 11[1][2][3] |
In late May and early June 2016 extreme flooding began after several days of heavy rain in central Europe, mostly Germany and France, but also Austria. Among others, the German states of Bavaria, Hesse, Rhineland-Palatinate, Baden-Württemberg, and North Rhine-Westfalia were affected. There was also severe flooding in France.[4] Beginning at the river Neckar, also the Danube, Rhine, Seine and their tributaries were affected by high water and flooding along their banks. Eleven people have been killed so far.[1][2]
Incidents
Germany
The Baden-Württemberg village of Braunsbach was most heavily affected by the floods. After flash floods on 29 May 2015?, small tributaries of the river Kocher flooded the streets of the village within minutes, and they were buried under rocks, trees and car wrecks. While no one was killed in Braunsbach, four people died in Baden-Württemberg alone, three of them in the floods, and a fourth victim, a young girl was killed while seeking shelter from the rain under a railway bridge in Schorndorf, near Stuttgart.[5] Among the dead were a 21-year-old man and a 38-year-old firefighter, who wanted to help the young man and died along with him in a flooded underpass in Schwäbisch Gmünd, imbibed by an open sewer.[6]
At least five people were killed in Bavaria, where districts established "disaster areas". The towns of Triftern and Simbach on the river Inn faced severe flooding. Three women were found dead in the basement of a flooded house in Simbach, and a drowned woman was found hanging over a tree trunk near the village of Julbach, after her house collapsed.[7]
On 2 June, it was confirmed that a fifth and a sixth person died in Bavaria, two men, aged 75 and 65, were found dead in Simbach. In addition, two people were reported missing, with numbers likely to rise. Streets were sweeped away, bridges destroyed. The small Simbach stream had risen from half a metre to a level of 5 metres within hours. Two people were arrested under allegations of looting.[2][3]
France
In France, the river Seine burst its banks and one town was evacuated. An 86-year-old woman was found dead in Seine-et-Marne, Souppes-sur-Loingafter her house was flooded.[1] Some areas reported the worst flooding ever seen in a century.[7] In the department of Loiret, six weeks worth of rain reportedly fell in three days.[1] Drivers on a highway had to be rescued by soldiers. In Paris, boat cruises were cancelled.[7] The Louvre museum barred public admission on 2 June to 3 June to preemptively secure the artwork in case of flooding caused by the river Seine.[1]
Reactions
- German chancellor Angela Merkel expressed her condolences to the relatives of the victims.[8]
- Bavaria's minister of the Interior, Joachim Herrmann, announced financial aid for those affected.[2]
References
- ^ a b c d e France faces more rain after storms kill nine people across Europe, The Guardian
- ^ a b c d Fünftes Todesopfer nach Unwetter in Bayern geborgen, Der Westen, in German
- ^ a b Sechster Hochwasser-Toter in Niederbayern gefunden, Rheinische Post, in German
- ^ Europe flooding: Five dead as waters rise in Germany and France, BBC
- ^ Germany: Deadly flash floods leave Braunsbach buried under rocks, trees and car wrecks, Ibitimes.co.uk
- ^ Zwei Männer in der Unterführung in die Tiefe gesogen, Die Welt, in German
- ^ a b c Germany declares second disaster area as floods kill at least four and devastate towns in Bavaria, Ibitimes.co.uk
- ^ Merkel trauert um Opfer des Hochwassers, Süddeutsche Zeitung, in German